Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen

Atletico Madrid vs. Bayer Leverkusen / Champions League – This second leg of the Champions League round of 16 is expected to be quite exciting, because Atletico was deemed as a favourite before the first match in Leverkusen that Bayer eventually won by 1-0 after totally outplaying Atletico. Since that match Atletico is in crisis and in the championship drew three times in a row, while on the other hand, Bayer won three consecutive matches in the league and one more in the Cup. At the moment, both teams occupy the fourth place in the standings in their respective championships, and this will be their fourth H2H match. They will play for the second time in Madrid, where the first one was played in 2010 in the Europa League and was a draw 1-1. Begins: 17.03.2015 – 20:45 CET
Atletico Madrid

Atletico is in decline and is already clear that will not defend the last year’s title of Spanish champion, while the second place is ever further. Most realistically they will end up as third which is also good enough for direct qualification for the Champions League, although that position will not simply fall into their lap and instead they will have to fight for it because they are now positioned below that place for the first time since the beginning of the season. The reason there are three draws in a row and when we add to that the defeat in Leverkusen it is a series of four matches without a victory and that didn’t happen to Atletico for a long time. It is true that the schedule was more difficult than usual but the team with championship ambitions must play very well even against stronger teams.

Instead of good play, coach Simeone’s players have scored just one goal in those four matches, which had taken place at home against Valencia 1- 1. They drew with Sevilla and Espanyol on Saturday by 0-0. In the letter match they played without suspended Siqueira and Mandzukic, while Arda Turan came off the bench. They might have won if stopper Miranda wasn’t sent off, which made their job difficult. They are going to be weakened in this match too because there will be no stopper Year and midfielder Tiago because of yellow cards and Saul Niguez who is injured.

Probable lineups Atletico Madrid: Moya – Juanfran, Miranda, Gimenez, Siqueira – Gabi, Koke, Arda Turan, Raul Garcia – Griezmann, Mandzukic
Bayer Leverkusen

Bayer has no problems like Atletico and it is in a positive series, although they are still far from having secured a place in the Champions League. After the last weekend they are somewhat closer to that objective as they won again, while their rivals who breathe down their neck have blundered. Bayer has three wins in a row and when we add to that the Champions League and the DFB-Pokal then the series grows on five wins, plus one drew in the Bundesliga. They haven’t lost for more than a month and that strange match against Wolfsburg. It is very important to add that have not received a single goal in those five aforementioned victories.

Not all victories were easy and with high goal difference although the last one, won on Friday against Stuttgart, was the most solid one. They have sent the guests back home with 4 goals in their net, which is an excellent introduction for this match. There are almost no problems with the team and L. Bender should return in the midfield, Spahic on the stopper, while Drmic will likely get an advantage in the attack instead of Kiesling, as he played excellently on Friday when he scored two goals.

Probable lineups Bayer Leverkusen: Leno – Hilbert, Toprak, Spahic, Wendell – L. Bender, Castro – Bellarabi, Calhanoglu, Son – Drmic
Atletico Madrid – Bayer Leverkusen PICK

The stakes are high and the result of the first leg is such that we expect to see a lot of tactics here. Atletico is not in the best shape but they how to play on a result so they will certainly not rush, while Bayer has solid defence and can to a large extent cope with attacks of the hosts. Therefore, we anticipate few goals in Madrid.

Pick: under 2 goals

Stake: 6/10

Odds: 1.75